LI Cares gives tons of pet food to shelter

Two Freeport charities teamed up Wednesday to feed Long Island’s four-legged homeless.

Freeport-based Long Island Cares, Inc. -- The Harry Chapin Food Bank, a not-for-profit hunger action organization, donated more than two tons of pet food to Bobbi and the Strays, a no-kill animal rescue and humane shelter. Bobbi and the Strays took over the Freeport Animal Shelter’s location on March 11 after purchasing it for $25,000.

The donation will be split between the shelter’s three locations in Freeport, Glendale and Long Island City, as well as Vetport Animal Hospital at John F. Kennedy International Airport.

“I’m so excited,” said Ozone Park’s Bobbi Giordano, who founded the organization in 1998, three years after unsuccessfully trying to save a dog hit by a hit-and-run driver. “It was like a fairy tale. I knew they would do something, but never did I think this.”

All of Giordano’s locations are near capacity, giving her more than 400 mouths to feed. She doesn’t know how long the 4,600 pounds of food will last her, but she said LI Cares’ donation of 400 pounds of cat litter should last her two weeks.

Paule Pachter, LI Cares’ executive director, didn’t let his generosity end with the donation. While making the delivery along with this wife, Evelyn, they met Sookie, a pug who was up for adoption. It was love at first site. The couple already has two pugs, Baxter and Misha, so taking Sookie home was a no-brainer. She was the first pug adopted from the Freeport location since it opened.

“For us to come here today, call attention to the need to rescue animals, call attention to the great work that Bobbi and the Strays does, that’s a win-win situation for us,” said Pachter, whose organization opened its first pantry for pet food in 2009.